There are two ways to look at it. If you’re an older NBA player — don’t trust anyone over 30 — either your body could use the rest from an extended NBA lockout or you are watching time tick off the clock doing nothing.

That said, don’t expect him to go rushing off to join an overseas team. He’s going to take his time, play in EuroBasket (the 2012 London Olympics qualifying tournament) into mid September, then when that is over take a look around, according to Marc Stein as ESPN.

“I’ve always said I’m too old to sit around for a whole year,” said Nowitzki, who turned 33 a week after the Mavs’ title-clinching Game 6 in Miami. “I still can’t see this being a long lockout, but if it is, I’m going to find somewhere to play.”

Bayern Munich, known worldwide for its soccer prowess, is trying to make its first-ever splash in German basketball circles and has been chasing Nowitzki for months in the knowledge that a lockout was likely forthcoming. Sources close to the situation likewise say free-spending Zhejiang — which also reportedly is courting Miami’s Dwyane Wade — is among the Chinese clubs that are offering more than $1 million per month to try to convince Nowitzki to play there.

I still tend to think you’re not going to see a lot of big NBA stars jump overseas. But if come mid-September things look very bad and a Chinese team comes in with a massive offer, it might be hard to walk away from that.